When a recruitment/appointment decision goes wrong

Organisational appointments, whether internal movements/promotions or external recruitments do not always go right. Indeed, these decisions can go wrong. I have personal experience of this throughout my career. I have in my career made appointments that have not worked out and I have seen other managers make the same mistake.

My view is that once one realises their selection mistake, they should quickly correct it by reversing the decision. 

The appointment of David Moyes as Manchester United Manager is a good case in point. The board made a mistake, realised it and simply fired him. This was and is in the interest of the fired manager, the players, fans and all other stakeholders. This was despite the fact that he had been chosen by Alex Ferguson himself. No hiring decision should be made sacred and this is a big and important lesson every manager/leader must learn, no matter how big or small the organisation is.

Moyes dismissal was not an emotional one, it was based on failure to deliver set targets. The club finished a miserable seventh on the league log and dropped from all European football competition. This was clearly a wrong hire, a wrong appointment and had to be dis-appointed.

So do not be afraid to reverse your own decision and or that of others, it's the right thing to do.

Indeed, the reason why recruitments fail is either not enough time or attention is paid to the process. The result is not necessarily the hire of wrong skills but the hire of oraganisational culture misfits. My organisation, NPPS HR Solutions, can assist companies avoid this recruitment problem which can be costly to your organisation. For more information contact NPPS on info@nppsrecruit.com.

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